First baby shower

We had our first baby shower this afternoon at my school. Ian and Mom came with me. It was Mom's idea to have everyone pitch in a few dollars and buy one big gift instead of each grade level buying something separate. Buffie went out on a limb (which is very unlike her) and sent an email to the staff requesting just that. Well, when we arrived at the shower today we saw that the school had bought us our travel system!!!!! Ian and I were both soooo excited! It was a very big purchase and we were assuming we would have to buy it ourselves. The generosity of the staff is amazing and we couldn't be happier! My fifth grade team did a beautiful job and had a delicious punch, three fabulous cakes, and beautiful flowers on the table. Mom also bought us the hamper that matches Will's bedding and it was FULL of tons of gifts. She gave us a taggy blanket, an "It's a Boy!" Christmas ornament, some precious wooden hangers, and LOTS of other stuff! She even gave us the silver teething ring that I used as a baby. We had a great time and it couldn't have been better!

It's beginning to look like a baby's room

Steve finished the painting on Saturday and I did a little bit of shopping on Sunday to get some odds and ends. Now, it's starting to come together. Since it's looking so nice in there, I've opted to move my sleeping quarters to the living room...but that's another story.

Here's what you'll see in the photos: a) Lola decided to help Steve put the first coat of paint on the walls b) Steve painting c-e) the furniture in Will's room and our new blue walls.

Still lots to do, but it's getting there.

Big baby boy!

Well, we are coming up on 28 weeks and bed rest has been uneventful (which is the point, right?). My blood pressure is good as long as I am off my feet-so no hospitalization for now. :-) We had a sonogram last Thursday and Baby Will is looking great!!! He is measuring about a pound heavier than normal-at 2 lbs 13 oz!!! This is music to our ears, since he will probably be early. He is completely unfazed by all the drama-unlike his mommy! I have been watching a lot of t.v. and shopping online so I can finish Will's nursery. My dad (Will's Granddaddy) is going to paint this week and we have a few baby showers coming up (which we are VERY excited about!). Keep us in your prayers.

Bed rest at 26 weeks!!!!

Well, I went to see Dr. Speight, my ob, last Friday and she was concerned about my weight gain and swelling. These are two things a girl NEVER wants to hear! Anyway, she put me on a low sodium diet and told me to check my blood pressure once a week. Ian decided he would go on the diet with me (what a trooper!) and we went shopping last weekend for a variety of foods low in salt. We have been doing great on the diet and I have actually been feeling better this week. I had the school nurse check my blood pressure today and it was pretty high. I called the doctor and they wanted to see me right away. When I got there, they took my blood pressure again and it was still too high. Dr. Speight informed me that I am to be on STRICT bed rest for the remainder of the pregnancy! That's three months!!!! Well, needless to say, I am nervous and disappointed and sad and a million other emotions that I won't bore you with right now. What's most important is that William is doing fine (I heard his heart beat today) and that we caught it early. I will have an ob appointment once a week now and sonograms every two weeks. They are keeping a close eye on things and as long as my blood pressure stays within normal range while at home, they won't put me in the hospital. Say a prayer for us! We will keep you posted!

I am an expectant mother!

Ever since I can remember, I have dreamed of being able to park in the "Expectant Mothers Only" parking spots at the mall and other places. I used to see these open spaces and wish I was having a baby and could park there. Well, I have finally gotten my wish! A few weeks ago, Ian and I went to Babies 'R Us to shop for a gift for a friend's baby and we got to park in this spot! I was so excited that I asked Ian to take a picture of it!!! Sometimes the smallest things bring the most joy!

New furniture

I don't care what anyone says. The only fun part of putting together baby furniture is when it's in a box and then when it's done. Everything in between is a beating. I put the crib together using the instructions only to find that the end pieces were on the wrong ends so it all came apart and then got put together again. Luckily, I had a helper (see Lola picture). My guess...William will be safer sleeping in a dresser drawer than in the crib his dad put together. It looks nice though.

Next up...painting. That I know how to do without directions.

William Beckett Rinestine

Our new baby, William Beckett (or Will - no "Bill" please) will be joining the family soon. We found out today that it is FOR SURE (if you know what we mean) a baby boy. William is already a big boy with head, abdomen, and body measurements at 19 1/2 weeks, though Ashlee's only 18 weeks right now. He weighs in at 10 oz. right now, though the average is 8 oz. The doctor says he looks great. No cleft lip, heart has 4 chambers, spine looks great, brain looks genius-like well developed. We go back for a 3D sonogram on October 17th which means you'll all get to see him very soon.

Starting to show!

I've been wearing maternity clothes since the beginning of pregnancy-partially because the fertility treatments caused some weight gain and partially because elastic waistbands are super comfy!!! Now, at 15 weeks, I am starting to show just a little bit. It's pretty exciting to see proof that there is a little person growing inside of you every time you look in the mirror. I'm pretty sure that I can feel Monkee moving around as well. I have to be laying on my left side and I have to be really still-but I can definitely feel little butterfly wings fluttering around! We have another sonogram on September 8th to find out the gender! We can't wait! :-D

The baby's monkee-ing around

As we watched the sonogram, we kept saying that he (yes, 90% of us feel this is a boy) looks like a monkey. Ashlee thought that giving the baby a temporary nickname would be nice, so in keeping with the "-ee" spelling of her name, we named "him" Monkee for now. So, when we refer to Monkee, now you know who we're referring to. Enjoy the sonogram. This kid has no plans of sitting still for the poor sonogram technician.

Very sad news

It is with a very heavy heart that I make this post. Yesterday, Ashlee had a week-14 sonogram to get a look at the babies. During the exam, the radiologist and doctor confirmed that sadly, Baby B passed away.

You may be asking how this happened. We just heard the heartbeats a week ago. The doctors aren't sure about this. What is clear is that is was genetic and that the baby was no larger than 9-weeks as of yesterday.

So, we mourn. We are very sad about this for innumerable reasons. Most of all, we lost a baby and that hurts badly.

However, the silver lining is that Baby A is well. Baby A is growing and moving and kicking. We have to smile and be grateful that we'll soon have a happy and healthy baby. New video of the baby should be on here today or tomorrow.

First heartbeats from the twins

Here they are.

Updates

It's been awhile since we updated our blog, so I thought I'd take a minute and do just that! We will be 12 weeks this Thursday. The babies are both 2 1/2 inches long (about the size of small fresh plums) and they weigh 1/2 an ounce each. My tummy seems to be getting bigger as well. I am feeling great! The migraines are pretty much gone and I have a little more energy these days. Ian and I are ready to see them on a sonogram again! We have an appointment to see Dr. Speight (our o/b) next Friday and we will get to hear the heartbeats for the first time! The following week we are having another sonogram. In another five weeks or so we will find out their genders!! So many important things are coming up! We will keep you all posted! :-D

Imagine if you will

At dinner, a few nights ago, a friend took a picture of me holding 1) a two-month old and 2) a large purse. I can safely say that the purse weighed more than the baby, but gave me a good idea of what it'll be like holding two.

New baby pics

Everything looked good on the sonogram. The doctor was very pleased with their progress. "Baby A" is still smaller than "Baby B" so we're just going to assume we have a boy ("Baby A") and a girl ("Baby B"). One can dream can't they?

For better pictures, click on the slideshow on the right. "B's" picture is fantastic. However, "B" is squishing "A" so that picture is a bit less clear. How quickly they've grown.

Baby date

Today was our first trip to the new OB/Gyn. She's really very cool. That could be because she's not poking me with various objects. She's also wearing flip-flops with her scrubs. She's our kind of doctor.

Our (her) lovely new OB/Gyn says that the due date for the twins is February 5th, though she says more likely 3 weeks earlier. So, it could be mid-January. More to come after the appointment.

What we go through each night

So, I thought it might be interesting to share what evenings in the Rinestine household look like. Many of you already have kids, so you understand the hormones, clothes not fitting, weird cravings (ladies), and the need to go out and get stuff to meet the needs of the weird cravings (guys). But what most of you haven't gone through is the nightly injections.

Every night for the last 8 weeks, and continuing for the next 2 weeks, I have to give Ashlee the biggest shot of progesterone you've seen. Sure, it's only 1.5cc, but the needle to get it in the syringe is ridiculous. The needle looks like something you might use for body piercing or perhaps a biopsy. Lucky for Ash, we use a much less frightening needle for the actual injection. this one is just for the extraction.

Once we have the medicine in the syringe, I swap the needles and then promptly give her an injection in her backside, butt, or hip (depending on the term you'd prefer).

So when you think about that one time you got a shot for strep throat or some other lovely disease you once had, imagine getting that shot everyday for 10 weeks. For that matter, imagine being the one giving it.

Okay. She probably does have it worse than me. But, I still don't enjoy doing it.

Feeling great...kinda'

Well, tomorrow we are exactly seven weeks along and all of the symptoms that I have been hearing/reading about are starting to kick in. Mostly, I am just very, very tired ALL the time-no matter how much sleep I get! Poor Ian wants me to go to movies and out to eat, but most of the time I am just too exhausted. :-( Thank goodness that I only teach summer school until 12:30 everyday, so I can usually come home and take a nap.

I have been getting tummy aches at weird times of the day and the only thing that sounds good to me at that time is ice cold water! I have been trying to eat a lot of healthy mini meals throughout the day to keep the "morning" sickness to a minimum. Currently, none of my clothes fit around the waist. I have bought some maternity pants and shorts and I am trying to make it through summer school without having to buy anything else. My skirts and dresses still fit-for now! I had to order a maternity swim suit because my bikini is NOT happening right now!!!! We are beside ourselves with excitement!

Ian is being sooo cute about the whole thing-picking out double strollers and diaper bags!

Done and done

"Baby A" and "Baby B," as we'll call them for now, are growing as expected. Fraternal twins. Who knows whether they'll be boys, girls, or one of each (we can only hope). Here are the stats:

• Baby A: 9mm from head to rump and heart beat is 136 BPM
• Baby B: 9mm from head to rump and heart beat is 141 BPM

Be sure to check out their first baby pictures. More to come soon.

First sonogram today

So, mommy and daddy are heading to the doctor's office today to have our first sonogram and see our babies for the first time. We're told that we'll be able to see heartbeats today. It's still a bit early to hear them. I'm not sure, but I think we'll get pictures as well. If so, they'll be up shortly after the appointment.

More later.

Welcome

Ashlee and I are very happy that you've stopped by to see what's going on with the daily adventure that is carrying twins. This has been an unbelievably challenging process so far, but we seem to be getting to the fun stuff now (well, fun for me...maybe not so much for Ash).

Keep checking in here. We'll keep this updated as often as necessary to keep you all in the loop. Just because you can't be here all the time, doesn't mean you can't feel like you're here.